Fire Industry News for August 2025

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews have saved an inner-city unit from an explosion and fire, sparked by a faulty Lithium-Ion e-bike battery. The FRNSW crew from Leichhardt was traveling near the city when it responded to a fire alarm In Yurong Street, Darlinghurst, around 11.20 am. Firefighters raced to the scene Joined by a Rescue Pumper from the City of Sydney station, firefighters raced to the scene, where smoke was issuing from a basement-level studio apartment The building's manager was...

Extraordinary CCTV footage, obtained by Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW), has captured the moment two backpackers were caught in a fireball when a Lithium-ion battery exploded inside a hostel at Darlinghurst, in inner Sydney. FRNSW deployed 22 firefighters and six fire trucks to Darlinghurst Road, where the blaze had broken out in a unit shortly after 9 am. It's suspected to have been sparked by a faulty e-bike battery left on charge. Security footage from a hallway shows one of the French national...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) investigators are returning to the scene of a garage explosion in Sydney's south-west to try to establish a cause. Around 3:15 pm yesterday, more than 30 firefighters were called to Maclaurin Avenue, East Hills, where a fire had broken out in a villa, triggering several small blasts. Neighbors rescued the occupant, an 89-year-old woman, and alerted emergency services. FRNSW crews A larger explosion occurred as FRNSW crews arrived at the scene and approached the im...

A garage has exploded into flames at East Hills, in Sydney's south-west, with multiple Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews bringing the situation under control. More than 30 firefighters and eight fire trucks were deployed around 3:15 pm to Maclaurin Avenue, where a fire had broken out in a villa. As firefighters approached the property, which is in a complex situated behind several homes, an explosion occurred within the garage. Significant damage The blast caused significant damage to the st...

Fire crews have successfully completed a hazard reduction operation to protect vital infrastructure and homes at Forster, on the state's mid-north coast. Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) firefighters from Forster, Taree, Gloucester, and Coffs Harbour, supported by several Rural Fire Service (RFS) units, conducted a fuel reduction burn over about six hectares of Boundary Street Hill late last week. Remotely Piloted Aircraft System The crews were tasked with reducing the heavy fuel load in the bush...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) investigators are working with NSW Police to establish what sparked a fire in an abandoned home at Marrickville, in Sydney's inner west. More than 30 firefighters and 12 fire trucks responded to the blaze in Hilltop Avenue just after 5:30 pm yesterday. They quickly arrived on-scene to find the home already engulfed in flames and parts of the timber structure collapsing. Fire Investigation and Research Unit A number of surrounding homes came under threat. FRNSW...

A Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crew has ruled out 'fowl play' after safely retrieving six wayward ducklings from a drain at Lake Macquarie. A family of eight ducks was waddling along Melroy Drive at Mount Hutton around 2.15 this afternoon when it encountered a large drainage grate. Mum and Dad duck safely made it across, but their offspring fell between the quacks, dropping about three meters to the water below. FRNSW crew A FRNSW crew from 505 station, Tingira Heights, responded to the scene...

A passer-by has raised the alarm during a house fire, caused by a faulty Lithium-Ion battery, used to power an e-scooter, at Temora, in the state's Riverina. The local Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crew rushed to the Loftus Street home around 9 am on Monday. Moments earlier, the neighborhood friend was driving past the house when he noticed the flames engulfing a storeroom on the property. He stopped his vehicle and ran to the front door to warn his friend. Minor smoke inhalation The FRNSW crew...

Multiple Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews, including experts in hazardous materials, have helped the NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) extinguish a fire that engulfed a service station in the state's Riverina. The blaze quickly tore through the main shopfront on the Hume Highway, Coolac, just after 10 pm, and threatened to spread to an adjoining awning and nearby petrol bowsers and gas cylinders. How to safely attack the flames FRNSW responded with fire crews from Cootamundra and Gundagai, along...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews have played a major role in a hazard reduction burn to protect Warragamba Dam, west of Sydney, and its nearby township from the threat of bushfires. FRNSW was tasked by Water NSW with establishing controlled burns and containment lines along the front of the 25-hectare zone around Sydney's primary water catchment. Ignite the hazard reduction fire A helicopter was used to drop incendiary devices into the bush to safely ignite the hazard reduction fire A helic...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) has carried out a major hazard reduction burn, eliminating the threat of a large grassland fire on the edge of Denman, in the state’s upper Hunter. FRNSW has responsibility for hazard reduction operations where bushland meets built-up areas across the state. NSW Rural Fire Service In this operation, FRNSW teamed up with the NSW Rural Fire Service to burn 40 hectares of grassland on the western outskirts of the township, known as Denman Common. FRNSW Bushfire...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews have visited 280 homes in Lithgow in the state's Central Tablelands, providing crucial home fire safety advice to dozens of grateful households. Firefighters from Lithgow, Lithgow West and Leura Fire Stations recorded 141 engagements with locals, offering advice about smoke alarm installation, cooking and barbecue safety and proper Lithium battery disposal.  They tested dozens of smoke alarms and installed 35 units free of charge in homes where the device...

They carried stranded elderly residents in their dressing gowns through floodwaters at night, provided shelter and vital supplies for isolated townships, responded to life and death medical emergencies and even rescued a dog trapped five metres up a tree. Now, the heroic actions of Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) firefighters during the Northern Rivers floods of 2022 will be recognized during a special ceremony tonight at the Ballina Fire Station. There are firefighters been nominated for their ac...

Senior firefighters are planning to recommend medical staff and members of the public for commendations, following an overnight fire in a ward at Lithgow Hospital in the state's Central Tablelands. Around 11.45 last night, Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews from Lithgow and Lithgow West fire stations responded to an alarm at the hospital. Crisis ward for smoke inhalation Fire crews located a small fire in an inpatient ward bed and quickly extinguished the flames When the firefighters arrived,...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) investigators have identified an electrical fault in a small fan heater as the cause of an explosion overnight in an industrial unit at Arndell Park in Sydney's west. The blast tore a hole in a wall on the second level of the truck spare parts business in Holbeche Road around 1.30 this morning. fire from spreading FRNSW dispatched seven fire trucks and about 24 firefighters to the scene. On arrival, the firefighters were confronted with an intense fire venting...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) is urging the public not to become complacent about home fire dangers now that winter has passed. There were 930 residential fires across the state during spring last year and FRNSW reminds the public not to drop its guard during the warmer weather. FRNSW to remind householders No fewer than 369 or 40% of last spring’s fires started in kitchens or cooking areas, prompting FRNSW to remind householders to invest in a fire extinguisher, a fire blanket, and worki...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews will door-knock more than 200 homes at Lithgow in the state’s Central Tablelands this weekend, offering crucial fire safety advice to local residents. The move follows similar FRNSW home safety blitzes at Portland, Merriwa, and Warren in regional NSW. FRNSW crews FRNSW crews from the local district will seek to engage with locals, offering to test, install and/or replace smoke alarms where necessary, free of charge. Spring begins tomorrow and that gene...

Multiple Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews are battling a fire in a multi-storey building at Darlington, in inner Sydney. The blaze broke out around 8 a.m. inside a third-floor apartment on Abercrombie Street, near Ivy Street. The incident was quickly upgraded to a '3rd Alarm' level response, with FRNSW deploying more than 30 firefighters and 10 fire trucks to the scene. Fire crews immediately began attacking the flames, while conducting an initial search of the building. However, the...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews have located a body inside a third-floor apartment destroyed by fire now at Darlington, in inner Sydney. More than 30 firefighters and 10 fire trucks were deployed to attack the '3rd Alarm' blaze in Abercrombie Street, near Ivy Street, around 8 am. Firefighting efforts and safety FRNSW crews initially entered the building, but were forced to withdraw when conditions became to dangerous FRNSW crews initially entered the building, but were forced to withdraw,...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews have declared safe the scene of a hazardous materials emergency this morning at Woollahra, in Sydney's inner east. Around 9 am, workers, carrying out renovations at an apartment in Oxford Street, discovered a plastic bag, marked 'uranium' in a wall cavity. zero reading for radiation The workers were monitored by paramedics throughout the incident but displayed no signs Concerned about possible radiation contamination, they called Triple Zero (000), sparking...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) investigators plan to further examine the scene of a fatal weekend fire at Punchbowl, in Sydney’s west, in a bid to determine the cause. The fire broke out on the top floor of the two-storey townhouse in Highclere Avenue around 10 pm on Saturday night (26 August). Three people were downstairs eating a meal when thick smoke began billowing through the home. NSW Ambulance paramedics A man and a woman made it safely outside while the third resident, a 54-ye...

Fire has destroyed an old coal tower overnight at Casino, in the state’s northern rivers district, causing disruptions to the Brisbane-Sydney rail corridor. At least seven Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) appliances, supported by Rural Fire Service (RFS) units and a bulk water tanker, responded to the blaze at rail yards in Bent Street around 1.30 am. Heavy timber structure Flames quickly engulfed the heavy timber structure. Fire crews established an exclusion zone and formed a defensiv...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews have contained a major acid spill at a factory at Dubbo, in the state's central west. The incident occurred at the business in Purvis Lane around 5.30 in the morning.  Around 300 liters of acid spilt into machinery, sparking a small fire, which was quickly extinguished. Approximately 24 staff were evacuated without injury. process of decontaminating the premises Three fire trucks and a Hazardous Materials team responded to the location. 20 firefighters a...

Fire and Rescue NSW firefighters, specialising in Urban Search and Rescue (USAR), have taken part in a major global exercise testing their preparedness to respond to a catastrophic earthquake. The Asia Pacific Earthquake Response Exercise (APERE), held in Brisbane this week, has involved a mock scenario in which a severe earthquake causes significant loss of life and collapsed buildings. Australia's preparedness for a disaster Experts have been evaluating Australia's preparedness for a disast...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews will visit all 785 homes in the central west township of Warren this weekend, offering residents crucial home fire safety advice and checking for working smoke alarms. Following a similar recent safety blitz at Merriwa in the Hunter Valley, crews are keen to ensure households in Warren are protected from fire and have current home safety escape plans. Firefighters from the district Firefighters from the district will offer to check, install, or replace smoke...

A team of Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) firefighters from Wyong is about to embark on a grueling nine-day trek across the Kokoda Track in Papua New Guinea to raise money for Motor Neurone Disease research. Wyong Captain, Jamie Loader, first raised the idea with his crew around 12 months ago as they considered ideas to replace the traditional “Climb for MND” charity event at Sydney Tower. Average life expectancy Every day in Australia, two people die from MND and another two are diag...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) advises an elderly man has died following a house fire at Cammeray, on Sydney's Lower North Shore. The blaze broke out inside a unit on the third floor of a Miller Street complex just before 5:30 pm on Saturday (12 August). FRNSW deployed more than 28 firefighters and seven fire trucks to the scene. NSW Ambulance paramedics Experts from FRNSW's FIRU conducted a detailed examination of the scene Fire crews forced their way inside the smoke-filled unit and rescued a...

Bourke Fire Station has significantly upgraded its fleet, with the arrival of a new, state-of-the-art Regional Pumper. The truck is one of 18 new firefighting appliances being deployed across NSW to help better protect communities during bushfires and other emergencies.   The multi-purpose vehicle is an Iveco 4 x 2, which is equipped with a 3000l/pm water pump, a compressed air foam system (CAFS), and a 2000-liter water tank. Emergency Services Minister, Jihad Dib, said that a new...

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) specialist crews have rendered safe the scene of a hazardous materials incident now at Arncliffe in Sydney's south. FRNSW HAZMAT operators were called in to assist the Australian Border Force (ABF) during an operation in Kelsey Street around 8 am.  The specialist crews located low-level radioactive isotopes, commonly used in several industries, at the location. The material was found in suitable and effective containers, with no release of radiation. Evide...

Avon Fire and Rescue Service (FRS) is not effectively gathering and recording up-to-date risk information, and its mobilization system is unreliable and crashes during 999 calls, the fire inspectorate has said. His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) said the issues were a potential risk to public safety, and must be urgently addressed. Fire and rescue service’s failures After making limited progress since 2021, Avon FRS has now been iss...